Let us be honest to ourself

Ramone · Post by **Ramone** » 2 Oct 2003, 21:18

I just realised I am addicted to Elma. You may think I am stupid for not realizing it before, hell I said it many times before. Just that, just now it all became so clear for me.

So I just want you all to open up yourself and be honest, be honest about your elma playing. Stuff you never said before.

Let us all be Honest.

Ky.Jelly · Post by **Ky.Jelly** » 2 Oct 2003, 23:49

i too am addicted to elma,

ok im not that good at it, but recently i have spent night after night watching that boring irc screen, battling and just pure hoyling levels for what ends up to be hours, i have given up almost all other gaming. i am to attend LAN this weekend and i know that i will not partake in most of the games because some battle will be on, or ive just found new style to xx and want to get a new record.

but honestly its not really for the records, i find myself sitting there play dull externals for hours at a time, not even trying to set best time, just driving my way to the end. i have now started drinking coke, (i never really liked the stuff) this may mean nothing to you but everytime i smell coke i think of elma, if i could install elma on this pc here at work i would almost instantly.

yes elma is like an addiction to almost any drug or drink or prehaps once caus if you over do it there is no where you can be made to go to get over it,

pedro · Post by **pedro** » 3 Oct 2003, 01:37

yes i have become more and more attached to elma since i went to #across and joined mopolauta and stuff... and ive been hoyling a lot trying to get my tt under one hour... its at 01:06:57:65 so i have a bit more hoyling to do....after that there will be th 55 min mark and then th 50 min mark etc. so what elma is is a never ending cycle of playing and more playing

insane guy · Post by **insane guy** » 3 Oct 2003, 09:37

its so, that i sometimes just HAVE to play elma (no matter what level), to become relaxed and cool down after maybe some ns or other 3d games

MP · Post by MP » 3 Oct 2003, 11:41

There has been many other similar topics (maybe few even ramone's own heh).

and yes we are all addicted :)

Xian · Post by **Xian** » 3 Oct 2003, 12:16

I don't know any elmaplayer who can stay out of elma...
I just have to play!

Kopaka · Post by **Kopaka** » 3 Oct 2003, 13:12

insane guy wrote:its so, that i sometimes just HAVE to play elma (no matter what level), to become relaxed and cool down after maybe some ns or other 3d games

I know that. I remember tihs very wednesday, I had been talking alot on irc, became manager for a cs team, searched inet for stuff. Then I was going to update my cs clan website, but no, i HAD to play a little elma before

Post by **SveinR** » 3 Oct 2003, 14:12

Well..Of course I'm addicted to elma, I've never claimed not to be. I don't play any other game nowadays, but I guess I would if I had a better comp and some new games. But still, I'd have played elma everyday and been on IRC and lauta and.. You get the point.

Jonas · Post by **Jonas** » 3 Oct 2003, 16:28

Addicted is when you stand over things you really like and instead play elma, I donÂ´t think anyone stays hom and plays instead of beeing with friend....if someone does, letÂ´s all feel sad for that poor person....People just like the game and somehow they think they all are addicted....strange...

2fast · Post by **2fast** » 3 Oct 2003, 16:31

I am so damn addicted that I can`t describe it

MagnusB · Post by **MagnusB** » 3 Oct 2003, 19:51

Jonas wrote:Addicted is when you stand over things you really like and instead play elma

No it isn't, being addicted is to feel a psychological need to do something and not being able to relax without doing whatever you're addicted to. However, it's true what you say that few people here are truly addicted to elma. If you're addicted it means that you're thinking about elma no matter what you're doing, and don't feel comfortable when elma isn't just an alt+tab away. There are degrees of addiction, of course.

I'm addicted to elma in the sense that I almost always play elma when I can. If there are no new posts on lauta I just open up elma and drive pointlessly around for some minutes, check if anything interesting's happening in #across/#battle, go back to elma. I've played the same levels hundreds of times, and usually I'm not even trying to break the record; I'm just driving. Something about that damn bike is just mesmerizing.

Still, I'm not so addicted that I spend a lot of time thinking about elma. When I go out elma stays inside, so to speak. I've also noticed that I, like most people who've played elma for a while but don't really play "seriously" (i.e improving tt, driving for internal records in general), play less elma and talk more on irc nowadays.

ToTaL · Post by **ToTaL** » 4 Oct 2003, 01:01

I think that I'm addicted to a certain point. Cuz I play when i have the chance, but nowadays i only play when i'm at home and that is only every second week-end. When i have no accsess to elma i don't acsually think much about it, but i sometime have urges to play. But when i come home it feels very good to play. And i too am not playing for tt now, but only for fun, like battles and stuff.

Zweq · Post by **Zweq** » 4 Oct 2003, 09:37

MagnusB wrote: Something about that damn bike is just mesmerizing.

can someone explain what means "mesmerizing". just a cool sounding word, i want to know it's meaning

MagnusB · Post by **MagnusB** » 4 Oct 2003, 10:24

Zweq wrote:can someone explain what means "mesmerizing". just a cool sounding word, i want to know it's meaning

Hypnotic, captivating, enthralling, etc.. Basically something that really gets your attention.

teajay · Post by **teajay** » 4 Oct 2003, 12:31

SveinR wrote:I don't play any other game nowadays, but I guess I would if I had a better comp and some new games.

I disagree, I have a supercool computer, but I just keep on playing elma, instead of some other rather 'cooler' 3D games

Jonas · Post by **Jonas** » 4 Oct 2003, 13:43

I have a really good computers and I play much more better games then I play Elma....so SveinR is right....

Post by **SveinR** » 4 Oct 2003, 14:01

If I had a better comp, I would've bought some new games (I did when this comp was alright), and naturally, I would have played those games as well. But I'd still spend a good deal of time on elma and elma-related stuff.

chux · Post by **chux** » 4 Oct 2003, 14:26

Flat Tracker wrote:
SveinR wrote:I don't play any other game nowadays, but I guess I would if I had a better comp and some new games.
I disagree, I have a supercool computer, but I just keep on playing elma, instead of some other rather 'cooler' 3D games

Yeah, I could run CS and pretty much anything these days, but Im just not interested...

MopoGirl · Post by **MopoGirl** » 4 Oct 2003, 23:28

i'll be honest with you and myself: i don't play it anymore, not at all. i don't even go to #across anymore and i only check the general forum. how did this happen?

petsen · Post by **petsen** » 5 Oct 2003, 01:25

MopoGirl wrote:i'll be honest with you and myself: i don't play it anymore, not at all. i don't even go to #across anymore and i only check the general forum. how did this happen?

cuz u cant stop thinking about me, and ur devotion to be has taken all ur lust away from elma ?

Karlis · Post by **Karlis** » 5 Oct 2003, 06:45

MopoGirl wrote:i'll be honest with you and myself: i don't play it anymore, not at all. i don't even go to #across anymore and i only check the general forum. how did this happen?

that's your boyfriends fault, but youll be back!

and better comp changed nothing, I just need 2166Mhz for elma
addicted........nooooooooo.........

dz · Post by dz » 5 Oct 2003, 14:51

MopoGirl wrote:i'll be honest with you and myself: i don't play it anymore, not at all. i don't even go to #across anymore and i only check the general forum. how did this happen?

Did you play sometime then? Oh yes, you had some girls wrs till some other unknown girl sent in at beat you bad.

bene_old · Post by **bene_old** » 7 Oct 2003, 07:54

i usally just click on the elma icon and doesnt realize that i do, then i just start to play it, just happens sometimes without that im thinking about it

happens like 5 times a day

bob · Post by **bob** » 7 Oct 2003, 12:20

i dont think im addicted, but i have made it a habbit, just like bitting nails.
i also think that i play elma so much bcoz i have school all week, and on weeknights there is nothing better to do (maybe tv) then sitting on the comp entertaining yourself.

i only play little on weekends, mainly sunday when got hangover

.

chux · Post by **chux** » 7 Oct 2003, 18:09

bob wrote:there is nothing better to do (maybe tv) then sitting on the comp entertaining yourself.

Heh, is it only me or does anyone else find this funny?

Im not addicted, but i like playing and theres no reason not to, so why not? I probably woulnt play if there was no scene though, thered be no point. I only reall yplay to get better tt on world and GBR rankings, and soon to get NWRs...without them itd be quite boring

Jeppe · Post by **Jeppe** » 25 Oct 2003, 06:19

ez addicted

at least those bango internals disgust0r me

an battle a week or i die.

Juish · Post by **Juish** » 26 Oct 2003, 07:21

yes, i too am addicted to elma. my freinds always tell me to change my desktop background (its the elma : it has you. thers no escaping background), but i never change it. they are all like "your addicted to that game or something" i say " im like top 30 in the whole entire earth, so i cant quit now

. obviously im addicted." i think my mom even knows im addicted. she knows i won rookie of year award at gaa03. shes was like way to go

im addicted and proud of it. this is best game in the world. i rent ps2 games and play elma more than the game i rent :p

HAYDNATOR · Post by **HAYDNATOR** » 14 Nov 2003, 08:20

im an addict of elma too

... not so much playing elma but going on moposite, mopolauta, and a little mIRC...

and while im being honest i might aswell admit i have humongus balls

WICKID · Post by **WICKID** » 14 Nov 2003, 16:09

I too am one who has been consumed by the life that is elma.
i have a mega computer and it has no games on it exept elma!

However i feel being addicted to a game as great as elma is not a bad thing

Zweq · Post by **Zweq** » 14 Nov 2003, 17:01

i am badly addicted to this game and i dont try to deny it anymore. i have tried to quit so damn many times, but no use. btw my internals break ended yesterday ;( ez 3 days break at least. pretty uncommon

)

Fluff · Post by **Fluff** » 14 Nov 2003, 19:25

TOTALLY ADDICTED ! every i have to play elma in order to be in a good mood !

2fast · Post by **2fast** » 15 Nov 2003, 08:53

I ahve tried to quit 3 times,but no use

Nikollie · Post by **Nikollie** » 14 Dec 2003, 05:18

I wouldn't say I'm addicted. I thought i was once, but then my computer crashed and I lost elma. When I got the computer back, I didn't bother putting elma back on (yeh, i backed it up) for about 3 months. Then last week I was really bored with nothing to do, so i put elma back on and started again. So, although I play it a lot, I can apparently quit anytime I want.

dz · Post by dz » 15 Dec 2003, 00:50

I've been having kind of a problem lately with elma, once in a while I know I need to start elma and feel the control of the bike - need to play, in other words. Well, that's not the actual problem, the problem is, I just don't know what to play. Actually, the main problem lies somewhere deeper I mean, when you think of it, how often does it happen that you want to play without any kind of real purpose? I mean, why do I don't find myself playing for specific goals, instead, I find myself just playing random levels without any kind of purpose, but to satisfy the abstract thing called "elma needs" (what a stupid term btw). Should I be concerned? Shouldn't this game exists to compete on something? Either it being competing against best times or competing against difficulty, it's always competing for something.

As I see it as it is right now, I feel like, well, addicted.
I never got hooked on smoking. I never tried drugs. But somehow I feel I can imagine what kind of state of mind you have when you are addicted to those things. So basically, in some imaginary way, not underestimating too much, one can arguably say "elma is a drug" (another stupid term), because I know I do wish I didn't need to just waste my time playing just to make me feel better and not "needing" to play anymore. That time could be used well better to something else.

Elma antidote anyone? I have a feeling it would sell better than the drug itself.

MagnusB · Post by **MagnusB** » 15 Dec 2003, 02:31

dz wrote:I've been having kind of a problem lately with elma, once in a while I know I need to start elma and feel the control of the bike - need to play, in other words. Well, that's not the actual problem, the problem is, I just don't know what to play. Actually, the main problem lies somewhere deeper I mean, when you think of it, how often does it happen that you want to play without any kind of real purpose? I mean, why do I don't find myself playing for specific goals, instead, I find myself just playing random levels without any kind of purpose, but to satisfy the abstract thing called "elma needs" (what a stupid term btw). Should I be concerned? Shouldn't this game exists to compete on something? Either it being competing against best times or competing against difficulty, it's always competing for something.

This is pretty much exactly how it is for me. I play completely random levels, in fact I just press random buttons and hit enter. I mess around a bit, hardly ever doing anything worthwhile, and even if I finish and get a best time it evokes absolutely no reaction in me. Then I hit esc a few times and pick a new level. Repeat this for some minutes, alt+tab to mIRC, see if anyone has written anything that can keep my mind off elma for some minutes, then alt+tab back into that damn game, and this can go on throughout the entire goddamn day if I have nothing else to do.

Like I've said some times, I've completely quit playing elma seriously, by which I mean: I don't play to achieve anything, I only play because I feel like I have to. Now, there's nothing inherently bad about that, but when you find yourself playing without even looking at the monitor or caring at all about where the bike ends up, it might be a sign that you should just close the game and do something else. Take it from me, what the hell is the point of playing if you're not even trying to finish the level? "Cruising" is one thing, aimlessly driving a 2D bicycle around boring vertex-based levels with crude textures, is another.

dz wrote:As I see it as it is right now, I feel like, well, addicted.
I never got hooked on smoking. I never tried drugs. But somehow I feel I can imagine what kind of state of mind you have when you are addicted to those things. So basically, in some imaginary way, not underestimating too much, one can arguably say "elma is a drug" (another stupid term), because I know I do wish I didn't need to just waste my time playing just to make me feel better and not "needing" to play anymore. That time could be used well better to something else.

You know, addiction is just another word for habit. Some addictions can be dangerous (e.g drugs), others, like elma, are technically only a waste of time. The differences between being addicted to drugs and being addicted to computer games are small, both of them involve an irrational craving for something. Also, drugs can actually be good for you, or at least make you feel that they're good for you; it's the same with elma: you don't have to play, you just feel like you have to. Another example: I'm pretty much addicted to cracking my fingers (beinding and flexing them so they make that strange snapping sound, you know what I mean). Whenever you do something so frequently and over such a long period of time it becomes nothing but routine. I don't notice when I crack my fingers, and some times I hardly notice that I'm playing elma. I don't want to do it, I don't feel good doing it, but somehow I feel more relaxed doing it.

dz wrote:Elma antidote anyone? I have a feeling it would sell better than the drug itself.

The antidote is to cut down on your playing. I tried this for some weeks recently, and I must say it felt good. After 3-4 weeks I no longer felt that I had to play elma to relax. I'm pretty sure everyone can quit elma if they feel like it; every time you feel like playing, just tell yourself that there's no point in it. Remove all shortcuts to the game if you have to, it'll pay off. Just keep in mind that elma is just a game, and that no one is forcing you to play. If you find yourself playing without actually enjoying it, you should probably take a small break. I'm not saying you should quit completely, just cut down a bit.

Now for the next issue... IRC.

Ky.Jelly · Post by **Ky.Jelly** » 15 Dec 2003, 03:19

MagnusB wrote:I'm pretty much addicted to cracking my fingers (beinding and flexing them so they make that strange snapping sound, you know what I mean)

this addiction is much worse than our elma one, i crack almost all bones in my body on a daily basis, yes that is habit and i do it without notice all the time, its only wen others notice that i will notice myself. just writing this is urging me to crack my knuckles and back.

anyway the senseless playing of levels is something i have always done, the only time i go hard out now is when i lose another nz record or something like king cup inspires me to play a level hard for about 30mins, maybe this is why i never get any better, i can not like others break records over and over, if i manage to beat a record by just a little bit then its all over for that level for quite some time. the senseless playing is great for download waiting and wen your not in the mood to do anything, ie 37degrees celsius outside.

If like me you have never taken elma seriously it will never piss you off and will always remain a great game and an easy way to spend ones time acheiving maybe just a little something

chux · Post by **chux** » 15 Dec 2003, 18:21

Ahh, I wish i could crack my neck and back...
I do my fingers all the time, usually they crack about 3 times each
occasionally my elbows and wrists crack too, but i cant control that